Brand Building

There is one action that you can do today and every day that will add value to your business AND your target market at the same time. 

 That action is brand building.

What Is Brand Building?

Brand building is about demonstrating who you are and what you’re all about all while bringing value to others. Brand building is not sales activation. Brand building keys up sales by increasing interest in what you do. Both are marketing strategies, but their goals are different. Brand building is demand generation. Sales acceleration is cashing in.

Why Is Brand Building Important?

Brand building is the long term driver of growth and profitability of a company. The goal of brand building is to add value to the lives of people you want to do business with BEFORE they are ready and EVEN IF they never buy what you sell.

This is an investment in the relationship your market has with your brand. If the relationship is strong, that means you have a strong identity in your market and can hold your value in negotiation. If the relationship is weak, that means you’re not really known and have to jump through hoops and take bad deals just so you can survive.

How Much Should Companies Budget For Brand Building?

The optimal budget mix allocation varies depending on vertical and stage of business development. The chart below is from the new research from the B2B Institutes and sourced from IPA Databank on what is generally considered the right allocation of brand / sales in terms of budget.

• B2B - 46% Brand / 54% Sales Activation

• B2C Average - 62% Brand / 38% Sales Activation

• Financial Services - 80% Brand / 20% Sales Activation

• Retail - 64% Brand / 36% Sales Activation

• FMCG - 60% Brand / 40% Sales Activation

What is are examples of brand building done right?

Dove by Unilever — In 2004 Dove started its now-legendary Real Beauty campaign that took #sales from $2.5 to $4 billion in its first ten years. This made Dove the number one preferred soap brand in the U.S. and Unilever’s best selling product company-wide. What did they actually do and why was it so successful? Read Brand Building Example Dove By Unilever

Budweiser and Titos - Both companies are making hand sanitizer to make up for the shortage created by Covid19. Watch my video about Companies And Leaders Doing Brand Building Right During Covid19

What is an example of brand building gone wrong?

Not investing brand - B2B companies notoriously drop the ball when it comes to brand building. Even though B2B companies that split their marketing budget 50/50 on brand building and sales activation are more effective at driving long term growth and profitability, only 4% actually do. Read Only 4% Of B2B Companies Invest In Brand Building

Sending mixed messages - Last month Target blocked their ads from running in news stories related to the #BlackLivesMatter movement. They also pledged $10 million and ongoing resources for rebuilding efforts and advancing social justice. Target says the reason is that they want to avoid appearing exploitative of tragedies and show respect by not advertising. Is appearing two-face better? Read Is Target's $10M++ Budget For Social Justice A Woke Wash Or Are They Legit?

Not taking a position - When #Covid19 struck and the shelter in place mandates was put in place, #business leaders created and set a plan in motion. While many of the changes were uncomfortable and painful, we made them quickly. When #BLM protesters took to our streets demanding justice for George Floyd, many business leaders have remained silent. In the past, the business norm would have been to categorize this as 'political' and gone largely ignored, but today both customers and employees want to know where your brand stands. Not declaring a position #markets a message you probably don't intend.

What are practical brand building projects that small companies can do? 

1. Host or facilitate a roundtable discussion for peer to peer problem solving. This is an effective way to learn about your market and what they care about, as well as, being highly valuable conversations to your guests.

2. Create an interview series or speaker series that solves a specific problem and highlights experts (including you) along the way. Don’t just put it on your website. Market it like an event and recruit featured guests to help.

3. Join a board or volunteer. Don’t just show up to meetings. Do something that pulls people into your world (not the sales funnel) so that people can really see who you are.

4. Take a stand for what you believe in. From Facebook boycotts to social justice, consumers want to know where you stand. It might feel safe and traditional, but staying silent can be deadly for business leaders.

5. Rebranding is very practical option whenever you need to uplevel or change direction. Sometimes you need a refresh and sometimes you need to completely change your inappropriate brand name.

If you want to talk about how you can use this to your advantage, consider a single session with Jenn.